Browsing: Jideofor Adibe

The Centre for Democracy and Development on Saturday condemned attacks on ad hoc staff, media, observers and other electoral participants during the supplementary polls.

It is of course almost impossible in our type of society for political congresses of this nature to hold without untoward incidents. A major reason for this is that in our type of societies power is a major means of production, material accumulation and dispensation of privileges

Was the meeting an endorsement of the Buhari presidency? I will say it is a qualified “yes”.

According to the report, the “most significant human rights issues included extrajudicial and arbitrary killings; disappearances and arbitrary detentions; torture, particularly in detention facilities, including sexual exploitation and abuse

“Finally let me again express my heartfelt thanks to all Nigerians who prayed for me during my illness last year. I feel deeply humbled by your prayers and good wishes and I am more determined than ever to serve you to the best of my ability. Good morning. And I wish everyone a Happy New Year.”

The truth is that since the US Congress passed the 1995 Jerusalem Embassy Act, (which recognizes Jerusalem as Israel’s “undivided capital”), US presidential candidates including Bill Clinton, George W Bush and Barrack Obama had made moving the US capital to Jerusalem a campaign issue. None delivered. Trump, who came to power on a wave of right wing nationalism, wanted to convince his base and the Jewish lobby that he is not all rhetoric.

Now that the military’s Operation Python Dance II exercise has managed to lower the tension in the South East (despite inconveniences to the civilian population) and IPOB’s activities have been proscribed, it is important to reflect on the lessons learnt from the whole situation

Given the above, it is difficult to ignore Nnamdi Kanu – whether you admire or loathe him. There are several questions begging for answers. How did someone, who two years ago was unknown, come to become so influential in so short a period of time across the country?  What forces propelled him to national consciousness? How come he is able to achieve such eminence among the Igbos who take pride in their republicanism and their achievement-oriented culture – despite his lack of personal accomplishment in either education or business? 

Buzzwords and mantras serve the same function in Nigeria – they are statements or slogans repeated frequently enough that they begin to sound like established facts or self-evident truths

But separatist agitations in Nigeria are likely to continue – at least for a while- because they are being propelled by different dynamics

All over the world chronological age is not what it used to be – people not only live longer but also healthier. Retirement age is being increased all over the world in recognition of this and there are people in their 60s and 70s who look better and healthier than some in their 30s and 40s

I agree completely with Omokri that Igbo ‘internet warriors’ get it all wrong to ascribe ‘cowardice’ to the Yoruba – an ethnic group that has produced some of the bravest individuals in our history, including Fela Anikulapo and his brother Beko, Gani Fawhinmi and others

On the prognosis for action, Obasanjo’s otherwise excellent analysis however disappointed

n a multi-ethnic country like Nigeria, where the fault lines are deep, the politics of symbolism, has been shown to be effective in increasing a leader’s national acceptance

To add to the wave of ‘Naija-optimism’, Filipino billionaire, Enrique Razon, was quoted as declaring during the closing activities at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland in 2014 that Nigeria was the best place to invest in the world that year

Obama symbolizes the fact that we all can, in a free society, overcome the challenges imposed by the accidents of our birth, to reach our God-ordained heights. This simultaneously calls on individuals to, on the one hand dream big dreams and work hard and on the other hand fight for a just society

With the EFCC suspected to be the attack dog of any government in power since Obasanjo set it up in 2003, it has had the problem of legitimacy across the political divides amid accusations of selective targeting of the opposition and opponents of the President

There are several signs of this disillusionment: the camp of the ‘wailing wailers’ appears to be growing and I receive far less threats and insults from ardent Buharists than I did a year ago whenever I disagree with the government’s policy options

In this reflection therefore, I will interrogate the notion of ‘patriotic Nigerian’, and how the identity of the ‘patriotic Nigerian’ interfaces with other identities that such a Nigerian bears

The argument was that due to Africa’s high level of indebtedness resources that could have been used to develop the continent were being used to service debts. In fact by the 1990s, the word ‘crisis’ was being used to describe Africa’s debt burden